UN counterterror chief: Nations must work smarter against IS

Published 5:57 am, Tuesday, July 5, 2016

Photo: Salvatore Di Nolfi

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Executive Director of the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate, CTED, Jean-Paul Laborde of France speaks at a news conference about counter-terrorism efforts of the United Nations at their European headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, Tuesday, July 5, 2016. (Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP) less

Executive Director of the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate, CTED, Jean-Paul Laborde of France speaks at a news conference about counter-terrorism efforts of the United Nations at their European ... more

Photo: Salvatore Di Nolfi

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Executive Director of the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate, CTED, Jean-Paul Laborde of France speaks at a news conference about counter-terrorism efforts of the United Nations at their European headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, Tuesday, July 5, 2016. (Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP) less

Executive Director of the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate, CTED, Jean-Paul Laborde of France speaks at a news conference about counter-terrorism efforts of the United Nations at their European ... more

Photo: Salvatore Di Nolfi

Image 3 of 3

Executive Director of the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate, CTED, Jean-Paul Laborde of France speaks at a news conference about counter-terrorism efforts of the United Nations at their European headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, Tuesday, July 5, 2016. (Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP) less

Executive Director of the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate, CTED, Jean-Paul Laborde of France speaks at a news conference about counter-terrorism efforts of the United Nations at their European ... more

Photo: Salvatore Di Nolfi

UN counterterror chief: Nations must work smarter against IS

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GENEVA (AP) — The head of the U.N. Security Council's counterterrorism agency says the Islamic State group is proving more flexible and adaptable than the governments battling the militants.

Speaking to reporters after addressing diplomats in Geneva, Jean-Paul Laborde said governments need to coordinate and share information more, and acknowledged that his job was partly to help them do so.

Based on information compiled from governments, he estimated at around 30,000 the number of foreign fighters in areas of Syria and Iraq now controlled by the Islamic State group.

He said the radical group has shown a "remarkable ability to adapt" such as seeking new funding sources like drug smuggling, even as the territory it controls has been shrinking due to international military pressure.